Amy Fetzer’s THE IRISH PRINCESS – A Worthy Romance from Ancient Ireland

This is a winning tale set in Ireland in 1169, at a time when Ireland was ruled by independent kings. This was my first by Fetzer and I was impressed. She tells a good story with lots of action and interesting, well-developed characters. There are some mystical elements thrown in as well with the heroine's unique ability to conjure mist, her sister's ability to see the past and the future, and a cousin who is a witch.

This is the story of Siobhan O'Rourke, Princess of Donegal, and Gaelan PenDragon an English mercenary knight, the bastard son of a nobleman, sent by King Henry to take over Donegal and hold it for his king. Undefeated, PenDragon is fierce yet fair and loved by his knights. He demands Siobhan's oath of fealty and she refuses. Other Irish lords would swear to King Henry but not her. Siobhan wants no husband forced on her (she's had one of those), but she agrees to wed the PenDragon when it means she can save her people. PenDragon had no intention of staying in Donegal but he was seized with the desire to possess the Irish beauty. Now he wants her heart. Treachery abounds and both have enemies who want to destroy them.

Fetzer does well at slowly developing the relationship between these two strong people, each harboring past hurts and biases that cause each to mistrust the other. Siobhan is a strong, feisty leader of her people. Gaelan PenDragon is a man of great depth who has never known love. When they ultimately come together it is sweetly done and very believable. I found only a few negatives: It took me a while to adjust to Fetzer's style. Frequently she changed perspectives and some of her scenes were described in a way that made them somewhat difficult to picture. The ending, though dramatic, was a bit drawn out to my thinking. And, a minor point: supposedly, Siobhan lives in Donegal Castle, though in actual history the castle wasn't built until the 15th century. None of this took away from what is a very good story. I recommend it.

The Irish Trilogy:

 

The Irish Princess

The Irish Enchantress

The Irish Knight

 

Amy J. Fetzer’s THE IRISH ENCHANTRESS – Delightful Story of an Irish Princess Gifted with Magic and an English Knight

Set in Ireland’s deep past, this is the story of Fionna O'Donnel, a sorceress from a line of magick women, who was banished from her home in Atrium for ten years because she betrayed her father’s wishes concerning an arranged marriage. Her home, GleannTaise Castle, has been taken over by English knight Sir Raymond DeClare at the English king’s command. All around the castle the land is laid waste under a curse.

Fionna once save DeClare’s life and she knows he holds the key to her people’s destiny, if not her own. Raymond must safeguard GleannTaise and take an Irish bride of noble birth. He is wildly attracted to Fiona and knows nothing of her parentage.

It’s a good story, well-told (albeit with some head hopping that will jar the reader at times). There is treachery, betrayal, the Irish trying to live under English rule and even fairies! I’ve read all three in the trilogy and loved them.

The Irish Trilogy:

The Irish Princess

The Irish Enchantress

The Irish Knight

Amy Fetzer’s THE IRISH KNIGHT – Superb Story of an Irish Princess and a Knight who is Loyal to the English King

A well-told tale set in Medieval Ireland that blends fantasy and historical fiction for a wonderful romance.

Set in the late 12^th century, this is the story of Connal PenDragon, an Irish warrior and knight who fights for King Richard, away on crusade. Richard orders him to return to Ireland and secure the peace by marrying Sinead of Antrim, his childhood friend who is known to be a witch. Sinead remembers Connal well. She once saw him as her soul mate but he spurned her and now she considers him a traitor for fighting for England, even against his own people.

Connal must marry her for duty and to unite their lands for England, but she refuses, telling him he must win her heart, or she will never be his. Forbidden since childhood to use her magic on him, she has no weapons to fight the emotions she feels for him or power to deal with the dreams that speak of Connal’s death.

Fetzer has done a superb job of injecting fairies and magic into a well-researched historical novel. It’s Ireland, after all, so it all seemed to fit. The characters are worthy. Connal is noble and Sinead is strong and determined to do right for her people. Their love is a slow burn. The dialog was rich and captured my attention. I guess I could say I thoroughly enjoyed the story.

The Irish Trilogy

The Irish Princess

The Irish Enchantress

The Irish Knight